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Former New Romantic icon turned DJ Boy George has been jailed for 15 months for falsely imprisoning a male escort in his London flat, it has been announced.

Real name George O'Dowd, Boy George was part of the New Romantic set who lit up London nightlife in the early 80s. Later fronting the internationally successful group Culture Club, the singer later became a successful DJ before a number of problems with the law.

O'Dowd admitted handcuffing the escort to the wall but claimed he did so in order to trace missing property. His family and band of supporters reacted with stunned emotion at the sentence.

Judge Radford said: "Whilst I accept that Mr Carlsen's physical injuries were not serious or permanent, in my view there can be no doubt that your premeditated callous and humiliating handcuffing and detention of Mr Carlsen shocked, degraded and traumatised him.

"He was deprived of his liberty and human dignity without warning or proper explanation to him of its purpose, length or purported justification."